TC Electronic BG250 Club

[drpepper]

Hi

I just bought a used BG250 from a well-known online site and it came with just the unit. No power cord. No USB connecting cord. No manual. And without that red "suggested settings" card on the top.

The manual I can download from TEC's website but I can't find those settings.

So if somebody has the red card maybe you can tell me what they are, or even suggest some settings. I'm in a cover band that plays mainly modern country and a little classic rock.

The online site says the BG250 was sold "as is" and won't send me anything else.

Thanks in advance.

That's too bad. Fortunately, the power cord is completely common, and the USB cables are easy to come by. I have at least 8 USB cables that would work (I guess if you don't have one, it won't seem that they're that easy to come by )

Here's a picture showing that I really need a new cell phone. Ha! It tells you what setting are best for Metal

BTW, I don't think there's anything magical about their suggested settings. It's a pretty straightforward EQ to simply adjust to taste by ear.

 

[Ralph124C41]

Thanks for the pic. I just got home and TEC rep sent me a pdf and said the same thing. I will play with it some today but I have a gig tomorrow and I don't know if I will bring it or just rely on my mammoth GK rig.

I hope it works out OK and I can CL the GK ASAP. LOL

 

[BassMorpheus]

Tbers,

I had a little time off today and went to my local GC. Played the Fender American Standard Precision Bass (hanging on the wall) & a Squire Vintage Modified Jaguar Special (straight out the box) through the BG250.

The amp rocks! For the the price, it rolls! The Uriah Duffy video about sums it up honestly. The controls are well thought out. The eq, tube drive, gain, and master are straight forward. The tuner is a great addition. The ability to dial in as much of the Toneprint as you would like/need was not made clear in the UD video. The Toneprint knob allows you to go from dry all the way to a full on wetness with the effect.

With the Fender and the Squire, the amp sounded really good. The weight is terrific. I am not sure what the build is like because you can't really kick the tires on these at GC, you gotta move em back and forth from gig to gig to measure that feature.

I will say as I was digging into the Squire, there was another bass player looking at a higher end G&K set-up and asked me which combo I was playing! Nothing quite like having another player ask you, what combo is that? It pushes air for sure. Will it hang in a death metal band? No! Will it cover all small to most medium sized gigs? YES & YES! If you need bigger than this you are probably outside with your stack or using a backline.

Daddy is gonna have to buy one now!

Controls: 8.5 (There is a minor learning curve).
Weight: 10.0 (If you can find a lighter and louder 15, buy it)
Sound: 9.0 (Only 250 watts, you know this at the start)
Looks: 9.0 (BG logo is cheesy)
Value: 9.0 (For the money, weight, and sound, its a best buy)

Cons: New model with 500 watts and an extension out for another 8 ohm cab! This combo with an extension cab at 500 watts would be really nice.

Have fun guys and check out the BG250!

 

[Stranger Danger]

Tbers,

I had a little time off today and went to my local GC. Played the Fender American Standard Precision Bass (hanging on the wall) & a Squire Vintage Modified Jaguar Special (straight out the box) through the BG250.

The amp rocks! For the the price, it rolls! The Uriah Duffy video about sums it up honestly. The controls are well thought out. The eq, tube drive, gain, and master are straight forward. The tuner is a great addition. The ability to dial in as much of the Toneprint as you would like/need was not made clear in the UD video. The Toneprint knob allows you to go from dry all the way to a full on wetness with the effect.

With the Fender and the Squire, the amp sounded really good. The weight is terrific. I am not sure what the build is like because you can't really kick the tires on these at GC, you gotta move em back and forth from gig to gig to measure that feature.

I will say as I was digging into the Squire, there was another bass player looking at a higher end G&K set-up and asked me which combo I was playing! Nothing quite like having another player ask you, what combo is that? It pushes air for sure. Will it hang in a death metal band? No! Will it cover all small to most medium sized gigs? YES & YES! If you need bigger than this you are probably outside with your stack or using a backline.

Daddy is gonna have to buy one now!

Controls: 8.5 (There is a minor learning curve).
Weight: 10.0 (If you can find a lighter and louder 15, buy it)
Sound: 9.0 (Only 250 watts, you know this at the start)
Looks: 9.0 (BG logo is cheesy)
Value: 9.0 (For the money, weight, and sound, its a best buy)

Cons: New model with 500 watts and an extension out for another 8 ohm cab! This combo with an extension cab at 500 watts would be really nice.

Have fun guys and check out the BG250!

The BG logo is a sticker. Comes off easy.

 

[loncoaudio]

does anyone know if there is a possible extension cabinet mod for the bg 250 i know the head is rated at 4 ohms and can add an extension cab.. i know they built this like this on purpose..so ifits pulling 250 watts the speaker and horn are probably set at 4 ohms would love to be able to add an 8 ohm extension can

 

[4FrankP]

It seems to me that the extension cab would have to be wired in series. Parallel would give you less than 4 ohms and would probably overdrive the head. The down side of wiring in series is that while you'll have more speaker area your wattage will be lower. My advice is that if you need more output for $340 at Musicians Friend when they are running a sale buy another amp. Unless you already owned another cabinet another amp would probable be cheaper and weigh less.

 

[drpepper]

does anyone know if there is a possible extension cabinet mod for the bg 250 i know the head is rated at 4 ohms and can add an extension cab.. i know they built this like this on purpose..so ifits pulling 250 watts the speaker and horn are probably set at 4 ohms would love to be able to add an 8 ohm extension can

There is no practical way of adding a conventional extension cabinet.

The only practical way of adding an extension cabinet would be to get a powered cabinet and run it off the DI. Personally, I don't know who aside from GK makes them, but if it were me, and this was an important criterion in a combo buying decision, I'd either get one that has speaker out or get a GK combo and matching powered cabinet.

[Invalid or Expired Link Removed]

 

[soulman969]

Thanks for starting this thread drpepper. There's a lot of good information here.

I researched this amp pretty thoroughly over the last week in the process of looking for something with a little more balls and low end punch that my MB 112. From what I've read this looks like the ticket. Light yet powerful enough to cut through the stage mix when run through the FOH or fill a medium sized room as a stand alone combo.

The research ended here and tomorrow I'll arrange to get one shipped to me. I guess it will be a good idea to keep the MB 112 around for a little bit just to make certain I do end up with one which doesn't have a problem. IME if something electronic is going TU it'll do it almost immediately. If you get through the first several hours of operation with no problems they're usually fine thereafter.

FWIW I generally run my new amps for many hours even unplayed and then run through power up and down cycles when I first get them . If there's a problem lurking it will generally show up during that "burn in phase". Still, it's a relatively new product so erring on the side of caution I'll keep a backup for a few weeks worth of gigs and rehearsals just in case.

You all have me pretty fired up about the possibilities of this combo doing just what I expect. I play in a seven piece blues and soul group and the MB 112 just doesn't have quite the low end punch to get under the mix as well as I'd like or cut through the mids created by two guitars and the horns. Sounds like just a little more power and a little more speaker should do the trick nicely and still stay under 40lbs.

I'll let you all know how it works out soon.

 

[BassMorpheus]

does anyone know if there is a possible extension cabinet mod for the bg 250 i know the head is rated at 4 ohms and can add an extension cab.. i know they built this like this on purpose..so ifits pulling 250 watts the speaker and horn are probably set at 4 ohms would love to be able to add an 8 ohm extension can

+1 with DrPepper. It is why I suggested at least a 500w version of this amp with an extension cab at 8 ohms.

 

[BassMorpheus]

Thanks for starting this thread drpepper. There's a lot of good information here.

I researched this amp pretty thoroughly over the last week in the process of looking for something with a little more balls and low end punch that my MB 112. From what I've read this looks like the ticket. Light yet powerful enough to cut through the stage mix when run through the FOH or fill a medium sized room as a stand alone combo.

The research ended here and tomorrow I'll arrange to get one shipped to me. I guess it will be a good idea to keep the MB 112 around for a little bit just to make certain I do end up with one which doesn't have a problem. IME if something electronic is going TU it'll do it almost immediately. If you get through the first several hours of operation with no problems they're usually fine thereafter.

FWIW I generally run my new amps for many hours even unplayed and then run through power up and down cycles when I first get them . If there's a problem lurking it will generally show up during that "burn in phase". Still, it's a relatively new product so erring on the side of caution I'll keep a backup for a few weeks worth of gigs and rehearsals just in case.

You all have me pretty fired up about the possibilities of this combo doing just what I expect. I play in a seven piece blues and soul group and the MB 112 just doesn't have quite the low end punch to get under the mix as well as I'd like or cut through the mids created by two guitars and the horns. Sounds like just a little more power and a little more speaker should do the trick nicely and still stay under 40lbs.

I'll let you all know how it works out soon.

Soulman 969, I think I will try the burn-in process as well. How do you do your cycles of on-off? In hours? Thanks.

 

[drpepper]

FWIW I generally run my new amps for many hours even unplayed and then run through power up and down cycles when I first get them . If there's a problem lurking it will generally show up during that "burn in phase". Still, it's a relatively new product so erring on the side of caution I'll keep a backup for a few weeks worth of gigs and rehearsals just in case.

Yeah, I do this too...

Er, not really...I did accidentally leave it on all day once

Seriously though, that sounds like a good process. I've come to believe that you have to have some kind of backup plan for gigs. With a combo, at minimum, that's going to mean having a way to go through the PA in a pinch.

I look forward to hearing your impressions.

 

[drpepper]

+1 with DrPepper. It is why I suggested at least a 500w version of this amp with an extension cab at 8 ohms.

It'll be interesting to see what else TCE comes out with. I question whether they have enough of a line to make it worthwhile to come up with combo extension (a 1x15 with matching dimensions) or a powered cabinet. The BC 10 and 12" cabinets do match the WXD dimensions, but the finish and look seems to be different (I haven't actually seen one).

 

[Ralph124C41]

Hi, gang.

First I did test out my BG250

I tried out before a gig with my modern country band. It's PLENTY loud. We played at a VFW hall so it was pretty large. And it sounded good. However I went with my big old GK rig only because I still miss the "oomph" of my 4x10 cab. Let's face it; it's a good amp but a single 15 incher and small tweeter just can't replace the full-blown richness of my rig (1X15 and 4X10) . But it's still very usable and with the compressor gives great articulation to the b ass notes.

Back to my request, any ideas for a CHEAP temp cover for this thing? Eventually I will buy some kind of online cover. I even bought an a/c cover ... then realized it really is made for an outdoors unit so one whole side is gone. I did find that a 39-gallon yard bag can be stretched to fill the thing. I may just use a cheap tarp and attach it somehow with velcro or bungee cords.

But any other ideas? You're talking to a bassist with more basses than dollars right now.

 

[drpepper]

Hi, gang.

First I did test out my BG250

I tried out before a gig with my modern country band. It's PLENTY loud. We played at a VFW hall so it was pretty large. And it sounded good. However I went with my big old GK rig only because I still miss the "oomph" of my 4x10 cab. Let's face it; it's a good amp but a single 15 incher and small tweeter just can't replace the full-blown richness of my rig (1X15 and 4X10) . But it's still very usable and with the compressor gives great articulation to the b ass notes.

Back to my request, any ideas for a CHEAP temp cover for this thing? Eventually I will buy some kind of online cover. I even bought an a/c cover ... then realized it really is made for an outdoors unit so one whole side is gone. I did find that a 39-gallon yard bag can be stretched to fill the thing. I may just use a cheap tarp and attach it somehow with velcro or bungee cords.

But any other ideas? You're talking to a bassist with more basses than dollars right now.

Um...a blanket and bungee (or old shoelace)?

 

[Ralph124C41]

thanks. I thought about that.

what I was thinking was finding a huge bag with a drawstring ... just like Santa always seem to have in all of those drawings. Now somebody out there must make giant bags like that. That should be a great way to protect this amp. I'm not joking. Santa, where do you buy them? I can't find them at Amazon.com

 

[BassMorpheus]

It'll be interesting to see what else TCE comes out with. I question whether they have enough of a line to make it worthwhile to come up with combo extension (a 1x15 with matching dimensions) or a powered cabinet. The BC 10 and 12" cabinets do match the WXD dimensions, but the finish and look seems to be different (I haven't actually seen one).

If they want to compete against G-K, they will have to eventually.

 

[soulman969]

Soulman 969, I think I will try the burn-in process as well. How do you do your cycles of on-off? In hours? Thanks.

I don't really time them Morpheus. My gear sits in my den next to my desk. Guitar and bass rigs. There are times when I'll turn them on in the AM and play through some stuff I'm working on then just leave them on all day. And there are other times when I'll turn them on and off several times a day.

Like drpepper posted I've even forgotten and left them on overnight at times. It's not something I'd do with a tube amp but the SS amps don't seem to mind at all. If they're gonna fail I want it to happen here not at a gig. So far I've never had any problems with the amps or this way of doing things.

I've had my GK for about a year and it's been completely trouble free. No service issues at all. The same with my Roland Cube guitar amp. I'm sure they're not indestructible but both amps have superior reps for dependability and I would attest to that.

Hopefully the BG250 will be the same although I can see a couple of guys have experienced an almost immediate problem with theirs so I'll leave it on for quite awhile after it arrives and cycle it often for the first few weeks to see if it fails. I'll keep the GK handy for a few weeks just as a backup until I've learned to trust the BG250.

Hope this answers your question.

 

[soulman969]

I don't really see this amp as something designed to run an extension cabinet. The 500w combos yes, but these smaller ones no. GK has taken pretty much the same approach with their 200w models. It kind of defeats the purpose of having a stand alone combo that weighs less than 40lbs if you're also hauling an extension cabinet too.

I typically run my GK through the FOH PA and it still has plenty of juice on stage as a monitor and I've used it as a stand alone amp in smaller clubs with a trio or a four piece. Even the MB 112 is amazingly loud and punchy for it's size. I usually have the smallest amp on the stage and some sound guys have mistaken it for a guitar amp and our guitarists Blackstar Stack for the bass amp. They're always surprised by just how much balls it has.

Last night I used it with a 7 piece blues and soul group and it did just fine. The drummer was behind my rig and he was still getting enough from it to hear it fine. Heck they rehearse at a higher volume than we played tonight. We just threw some bass in the monitors for the guitarists and the FOH took care of the rest. I wasn't even running close to wide open either on my bass or the amp.

If that's the case with that GK then with a little more power and a little bigger speaker the BG 250 should be more than adequate for the type of gigs I usually do. In my opinion an extension speaker is more of a benefit as a stage monitor for the guys on the opposite side of the stage than it is for the room. That's really what the FOH and subs are for and I'm not driving it so hard that the stage mix gets deafening from guys turning up or a drummer playing louder to overcome it.

Anyway these smaller rigs are efficient enough for my needs but of course others may feel the need for something bigger.

 

[plankspanker13]

First gig action with mine, last night; nothing but good things to say about the basic tone. I did not use the tuner or on-board effects, since I had my large pedalboard with me. It was all the amp that I needed, and the schlep was easy. The definition of "mini rig of doom" is now changed, for me.

 

[top028]

I wonder how it will handle a double bass. My double has a broken tail gut, and I havent had it fixed, or I would try it out. Anyone have access to try out a double with it? The double bass guys seem to have a bias against 15s, although the old ampeg fliptops are a favorite.